Mott Street

Mott Street is a busy thoroughfare in Manhattan, New York City which runs from Bleecker Street in the north to Chatham Square in the south. Originally known as Old Street, it was renamed after tavern owner and butcher Joseph Mott, who supported the Patriots during the American Revolutionary War. It predated Manhattan's grid, with a distinctive curve near Pell Street being formed due to the existence of the Collect Pond before it was ultimately paved over. During the 19th century, Mott Street was one of the Five Points, a notorious slum. In 1858, the first Chinese immigrant arrived on Mott Street and opened a cigar shop, and, starting in 1872, waves of Cantonese immigrants began to arrive and carve out an enclave around Mott, Pell, and Doyer Streets. Most immigrants were from Taishan, Guangdong, but, during the 1960s, Cantonese immigrants from Hong Kong and Taiwan also began to arrive on Mott Street, which became the "Main Street" of Manhattan's Chinatown. During the 1940s, Mott Street was a part of Little Italy, and Vito Corleone's Genco Pure Olive Oil building was located on the street. However, Chinatown engulfed much of the Lower East Side, and the Ghost Shadows Chinese gang took over the street during the late 1960s. During the 1970s, Triad gang violence on Mott Street led to gunshots becoming a regular occurrence and tourists being unintentionally injured.